Reagan's Bid for Contra Aid

Our Leader Who Art in Washington continues to suffer from an apparently incurable case of historical myopia. His latest essay into misunderstanding or dissembling is the analogy drawn between the departed, unlamented Ferdinand Marcos and the present situation in Nicaragua. Wrong again, Mr. President.

The historically valid analogy is between Marcos and Anastasio Somoza, both deposed by their own people over the objections of their U.S. patrons. Marcos and Somoza were our creatures. The nations they misruled and plundered for so long were the victims of U.S. foreign policy, which opposed the democratic and nationalist aims of their respective peoples.

Had the United States supported the people of Nicaragua as it did the Filipino people (however belatedly and reluctantly), there would have been a chance for a democratic state to emerge instead of the present Soviet dependency. Instead, we elected to frustrate the aspirations of the Nicaraguan people and forced them to turn to the East for patronage. Apparently we'll never learn; certainly not with this President.

Incidentally, has anyone else noted Reagan's ability to turn the phrase "freedom fighter" into an obscenity? He does have a way with words.